Lockhart - William C. - Montgomery InGenWeb Project

931/932/933/934/935. History of DeKalb County, Indiana; B.  F. Bowen & Company, Inc., Indianapolis, 1914.  There is a scientific historical consistency in the  compilation of publications of this nature, since here are  perpetuated for future generations the life records of  those who have been factors in the industrial  and civic  life of their respective communities and who has commanded  the confidence and esteem of their fellow men. Such works  are cumulative in value as the years fall into the abyss of  time,  and it is right and proper that the achievements of  those who have proved themselves worthy in connection with  the varied activities of their day should find such  memorials as those offered in this connection.  William  McClaren Lockhart was born on May 27, 1934, at Lexington,  Richland county, Ohio, and was a son of James and Jane  (McBride) Lockhart. The name Lockhart is believed to have  originated in Scotland in the time of Robert Bruce, the  famous Scottish chieftain. Sir Stephen Lockard was charges  by  Robert Bruce that in case Bruce  were slain in a coming  engagement Lockard was to take his heart out and put it in  a small iron casket to return to Bruce’s homeland.  This he  did and when the troops wavered in a desperate charge he  threw the casket containing the heart into the midst of the  enemy and bade the troops follow the heart of Bruce. They  charged bravely, thus inspired, and won the victory.   Lockard recovered the heart and returned it to its home and  was from that time called Lockheart instead of Lockard.   James Lockhart was a native of county Tyrone, Ireland, and  was a son of William and Mary (McClaren) Lockhart. He was  left an orphan in infancy and was reared in the families of  his father and his mother. He learned the trade of a linen  weaver and at the age of twenty-five years emigrated to  America with his uncle, James McClaren, and family,  locating in Pennsylvania. There he was for six years  employed at farm work, at first for six dollars a month,  and later for seven dollars a month. He then learned the  trade of a distiller in the employe of James McCullough, a  Presbyterian preacher.  Mr. Lockhart was in religion a  Protestant, having been reared in the Baptist faith and a  member  of that church, but in America he united with the  Presbyterian church. In Ireland he had been an enthusiastic  Orangeman, strongly anti-Catholic in his convictions, and  after coming to America was intensely loyal to his adopted  country, and, though a Democrat in principles, stood firmly  for the Union, recalling that on being naturalized he had  sworn to support the Constitution of the United States. His  wife, Jane McBride, was a daughter of  Robert and Rosamond  (Greenfield) McBride, who emigrated from the north of  Ireland soon after their marriage, locating at Springfield,  Cumberland county, Pennsylvania. Their parents both came  originally from Ayreshire, Scotland, Robert McBride, a  brother of James McBride, was a soldier in the war of 1812,  taking part in the battle of Lundy’s Lane. In 1854 Robert  McBride Lockhart, a brother of William C., came to DeKalb  county, Indiana, and began the erection of a sawmill in  Smithfield township. On December 17, 1855, William C. came  here, also locating in Smithfield township. From his early  childhood until arriving at his majority William C.  Lockhart lived in Lexington, Ohio, where he received a  little schooling. When he was about ten years of age his  father was caused a heavy financial loss by a dishonest  partner, which reduced him for a competency to an  indebtedness of five hundred dollars above the value of all  his property. His creditors were called together and they  told him to get rid of his partner, keep his property,  continue in business and pay out as best he could, they  having absolute belief in his honesty and integrity. This  he did and when William C. was twenty-one and his brother  Robert, twenty-three years of age, they had paid all but  fifty dollars of the indebtedness and has a property of a  cash value of nine hundred dollars. The financial condition  of the family interfered with the education of the boys,  who received but very little schooling, but they did the  best they could and made the most of opportunities.  In the  fall of 1854 William C. passed a teacher’s examination and  taught school with seventy-five pupils under him, in which  he was very successful, being earnestly urged to take the  school another year, but this he refused.  The Lockhart  brothers operated the mill owned by their father, part of  the time  night and day and apart of the time fourteen  hours a day, and it is related that William C. Lockhart  obtained much of his needed sleep on the roof of this mill.  Money was exceedingly scarce, although they worked hard,  but they were greatly encouraged by the attitude of their  father’s creditor who had shown the utmost confidence in  the integrity and ability of the family to pay out, and  even when the boys had some money to pay,  they told them  to use the money in the business and pay when convenient.  They eventually paid every debt  in full.  At the outbreak  of the great Civil war the brothers were greatly shocked at  the news of the defeat of the Union forces a the battle of  Bull Run, and they agreed that they should make a sacrifice  for the Union.  Each offered to go as a soldier, but  finally it was decided that William should go. After a few  days spent in settling his business affairs, he enlisted in  a company, which he had helped to organize and of which he  was made first lieutenant. Just at the time he was taken  with typhoid fever, in which he was seriously ill and had  several severe relapses. The man who took his place became  a colonel inside of a years.  By June, 1863, Mr. Lockhart  had recuperated and enlisted in Company A, One Hundredth  Regiment Indiana Infantry, and although he could have had a  higher rank, he declined it. In the following summer he was  taken ill and, after being in the hospital, was sent home  on furlough, and in the following autumn was honorably  discharged over his protest because of physical disability.  His heart was so enlarged that the doctor said that if he  did not die soon it would be a wonder. Twenty years later  Doctor Swarts told him that nothing but indomitable will  had saved his life, although he had a natural fine  physique. He was a faithful and courageous soldier, did his  duty and endured many hardships, while he was in the  service. He was discharged on October 22, 1863, after  serving fourteen months and nine days. On December 22,  1864, Mr. Lockhart married Elizabeth Spencer, at  Shalersville, Ohio, but after a few years of happy wedded  life, her death occurred on October 16, 1867, and she was  buried at Waterloo, DeKalb county. She left one daughter,  Jennie M., who is now the  wife of James Craig Day, of  Waterloo. On May 6, 1869, Mr. Lockhart married Mary E.  Hickox, to whom a son was born on November 28, 1872, Robert  W., who is now a successful farmer of Smithfield township,  this county, and who is represented elsewhere by a personal  sketch in this work. On February 6, 1884, Mrs. Mary  Lockhart died of heart failure, and on October 17, 1887,  Mr. Lockhart married Julia Osborn, a sister of his former  wife, her death occurring at Waterloo on December 16, 1891.  On January 4, 1894, he married Elizabeth Ames Ansley.  To  revert to Mr. Lockhart’s business experience, after he has  sufficiently recuperated after his discharge from the army  he resumed the lumber business with his brother. They  operated the old sawmill and also bought hardwood lumber at  many points on the railroad and canal, which they sold at  Eastern markets. They were prospered and gradually extended  their business affairs from that point, erecting a large  sawmill, a well equipped planing mill and later a wood  working shop. They also operated a sawmill in Parke county,  Shortly prior to the panic of 1873, an invoice showed them  worth ninety thousand dollars, with advantageous contracts  in hand for a large amount of business.  The panic came on  and hit the Lockhart Brothers hard, and in addition to  their financial distress, their mill in Parke county  burned, as did their dry kiln at Crawfordsville. Many of  their customers who owed them large sums of money failed in  business and could not pay, but in spite of these  discouraging conditions and through brought face to face  with bankruptcy, they held on to an honest course in their  business affairs and in the hope of helping his fortune  William C. extended his operations to Iowa. Here he was  successful and was beginning to recover financially, when a  flood washed a big boom of logs away, entailing the loss of  over twenty thousand dollars.  After several years in Des  Moines, Iowa, Mr. Lockhart disposed of his business  interests there and in January, 1885, he returned to  Crawfordsville, and in the spring of 1886 he moved to  Waterloo where he lived until his last marriage, when he  moved to Fairfield township, where his death occurred on  February 25, 1910, at the age of seventy-five years.  About  1879 or 1880, a murderous attempt was made on the life of  W. C. Lockhart. Mr. Lockhart was seated at the table in his  office busily engaged in writing, when the report of a  rifle was heard and a bullet whizzed unpleasantly near his  head. Some fifteen minutes were suffered to go by before  investigation was made to see from where the bullet came.   It was finally discovered that the person who fired the  shot occupied an empty wood house just across the railroad  cut and about a quarter of a mile away, and fired through a  knot hole in the wall. What object the would-be assassin   could have in attempting to take the life of Mr. Lockhart,  is not known.  One theory is, that offense was taken by  some one at the active and pustifiable energy displayed by  Mr. Lockhart on Election day. He having been a regularly  appointed challenger.  William Lockhart was a man of  positive character and fine personality. Though deeply  interested in the welfare of the communities where he lived  he persistently refused to accept public office. It is said  by one who knew him will that he never said a cross word in  his life, was unselfish in his disposition and nobly  wrought for the good of others. Fraternally, he was a Mason  and an Odd Fellow and was a regular attendant and supporter  of the Baptist church. He was an enthusiastic worker in the  temperance cause, especially among his many employees at  Crawfordsville, among whom exerted a beneficent influence.   His wife, who also was enthusiastic in the temperance work,  was an active member of the order of Good Templars. Mr.  Lockhart was slow to make a promise, but once given it was  never broken. Modest in his attitude and demeanor, he often  failed to receive the credit due him, allowing it to go to  others without protest. His Irish blue eyes were symbols of  truth.  Although naturally hot tempered, he was strong  enough to control his feelings, and because of his earnest  and gentlemanly demeanor among his associates he was held  in high regard.  His word carried weight and his thoughtful  expressions received a hearing wherever he was known. He is  best thought of by those who knew him best, and in the  communities where he lived he at all times enjoyed the  sincere regard of all who knew him because of his high  character, gentlemanly qualities and earnest desire to do  that which he felt to be right.  Submitted by:  Arlene Goodwin  Auburn, Indiana  Agoodwin@ctlnet.com

Thanks so much to Dan Terry, coordinator of the DeKalb County IN GenWeb for allowing me to add this to Lockhart's biography 

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Biography of Robert William Lockhart, pages  854/855/856/857.  History of DeKalb County, Indiana; B. F.  Bowen & Company, Inc., Indianapolis, 1914.   The visitor to the highly improved farm of this gentleman,  in Smithfield township, finds it difficult to realize its  former state and the many hard stokes necessary to bring it  to its present condition.  There is little in the  commodious residence, fine barns and outbuildings,  cultivated fields and lowing herds to suggest the pioneer  period, but this beautiful place represents a link in that  remarkable evolution which, in the lifetime of men still  living, has converted Indiana from a wilderness to a  smiling garden.  Robert William Lockhart was born on  November 28, 1872, in the beautiful city of Crawfordsville,  Montgomery county, Indiana, and is the son of William C.  and Mary Elizabeth (Hickox) Lockhart. William M. Lockhart  was born on May 27, 1834, at Troy, Richland county, Ohio, a  son of James and Jane Lockhart. James Lockhart was a native  of county Tyrone, Ireland, and was a son of William and  Mary Ann (McLaren) Lockhart. James was left an orphan in  infancy and learned the trade of a linen weaver. At the age  of twenty-five he emigrated to America, locating in  Pennsylvania, where he worked for several years and then  learned the trade of a distiller.  He was intensely loyal  to his adopted country in her hour of need, being a strong  supporter of the Union and the Constitution. In 1856 James  and Jane (McBride) Lockhart came to Smithfield township,  DeKalb county, bringing with them their son William C.  The  latter had from early childhood until his majority lived in  Lexington, Ohio, where his father, through the dishonesty  of a partner, became bankrupt. William C. and his brother  nobly determined to pay the father’s debts and this they  did, though it meant tremendous exertion and untold  hardships. The financial condition of the family interfered  with the education of the boys, who received very little  schooling. William C. Lockhart was a soldier for the Union  during the Civil war, where he was severely wounded and was  discharged from the service because of physical disability  after about fifteen month’s service. In 1864 he married  Elizabeth Spencer at Salesville, Ohio, her death occurring  in October, 1867. On May 5, 1869, Mr. Lockhart married Mary  Elizabeth Hickox, and to them were born, on November 28,  1872, a son, the immediate subject of this sketch. On  February 6, 1884, Mary E. (Hickox) Lockhart died, and on  October 17, 1887, Mr. Lockhart married Julia P. (Hickox)  Osborn, a sister of his former wife.  Her death occurred at  Waterloo, Indiana, on December 16, 1891, and on January 4,  1894, he married Elizabeth Ames Ansley. After recovering  from his army wounds, Mr. Lockhart resumed the lumber  business, in which he had been engaged before the war and  was quite heavily interested in this business for a number  of years.  In December, 1869, he moved to Crawfordsville,  Indiana, where he was engaged in the sawmill business, and  in which he was very prosperous, so that just prior to the  panic of 1873 and invoice showed the business to be worth  ninety thousand dollars, with many good contracts on hand.  Along with the panic came serious losses by fire, the mill  in Parke county and the dry kiln in Crawfordsville being  burned, and many creditors failed to pay them what their  owed.  They had hard work stemming the tide, but, extending  their business to Iowa, they began to recover financially,  when the flood washed out a big jam of logs, the loss  amounting to more than twenty thousand dollars. In January,  1885, Mr. Lockhart went out of business and returned to  Crawfordsville and in the spring of the following year he  moved to Waterloo, where he lived until his last marriage,  then located in Fairfield township, where he died on  February 25, 1910, at the age of seventy-five years. A good  business man and indefatigable worker, he enjoyed the  universal respect of all who knew him. He was a Mason and  Odd Fellow and a regular attendant of the Baptist church,  being an enthusiastic worker in the cause of temperance.  Robert W. Lockhart received a good common school education  at Waterloo, Crawfordsville and Des Moines, Iowa, and was  then employed at different vocations and in different  places until the fall prior to his marriage,  and after  that event he located, in 1894, on the farm in Fairfield  township, which he operated for nine years. He fell heir to  forty-five and one-half acres of land from his father,  which he sold and then bought eighty acres of good land in  Fairfield township.  Eventually he sold this tract and  bought one hundred and sixty acres of land in section 17,  Smithfield township, which is the present homestead,  and  to this he has devoted his undivided attention, so that  today there are few farms in this favored section of DeKalb  county which are its equal.  It is known as the old Joel E.  Thompson homestead. Not only has the fertility of the soil  been maintained, but the permanent improvements on the farm  made by Mr. Lockhart have been noteworthy.  The large, up- to-date, roomy and well arranged barns and other  substantial outbuildings, the house of modern and  attractive appearance, the well-kept fences and all other  incidental accessories of an up-to-date farm attract the  attention of the passerby, and add to the value and  desirability of the place.  Mr. Lockhart has been intensely  progressive in everything he has done and the barn erected  by Joel E. Thompson was the first one built along modern  ideas in this township. He has now lived on this farm for  five years and has already achieved a splendid reputation  among his fellow agriculturists.  On February 25, 1894,  Robert W. Lockhart married Mary Catherine Hartman, the  daughter of Joel E. and Sarah (Gushwa) Hartman, who are  referred to elsewhere in this work. This union have been  born six children, namely: Carl W., Ralph Russell, Mary  Dorothy, Eda Grace, Wilma, deceased, and Robert Spencer,  the latter being the eighth generation of Robert on the  McBride side of the family.  Politically, Mr. Lockhart was  formerly a Republican, but is inclined to the support of  the Progressive party, believing that the principles as  advocated by Theodore Roosevelt and other distinguished  advocated of Progressive principles to be the most  conducive to the welfare of the American people. Mr.  Lockhart was appointed township committeeman of the  Republican party, but in 1898, because of pressing duties  of his private business he resigned the position after one  year of effective service. Fraternally, he is a member of  the Modern Woodmen of America at Ashley, while,  religiously, though not a member of any church, his  sympathies are with the Baptist faith.  Mr. Lockhart has no  special fads or specialties, but contents himself with  general farming operation, not neglecting stock raising on  a moderate scale, and although enjoys the reputation of  being a painstaking and prudent husbandman.  Because of his  business success and his high personal qualities, he is  held in high esteem by his fellow citizens of Smithfield  township and is entitled to rank among the representative   men of his profession in DeKalb county.  Submitted by:  Arlene Goodwin  Auburn, Indiana  Agoodwin@ctlnet.com

Thanks so much to Dan Terry, coordinator of the DeKalb County IN GenWeb for allowing me to add this to Lockhart's biography 

NOTE:  There are other Lockhart items on the DeKalb County INGenWeb page -- land transfers, etc.

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